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Quarterback
Ohio State will be taking a second quarterback in the 2020 class assuming it can get one, which I think is a pretty good assumption at this point. Right now C.J. Stroud remains the top option but the Buckeyes also like Jayden de Laura out of Hawaii quite a bit. Both of these guys should make official visits here at some point with Stroud's likely coming first.
What I think is most likely at this point, and this is subject to change, is that Stroud will visit Oregon next weekend for its in-state rivalry game against Oregon State and the Ohio State official visit will end up taking place that second weekend in December, the weekend after the Big Ten Championship Game.
I had someone close to Stroud tell me today to not completely rule him out for this coming weekend for the Penn State game but nothing has been set at this point and I really don't think that Ohio State wants it to go down that way, think they really want the December visit at this point.
What happens around those two visits is also still up in the air. How hard will USC push here? The Michigan offer is interesting and the Wolverines could get a visit and Baylor is still very much in the picture as well along with UCLA. I still believe that as things stand today, Ohio State and Oregon are the two programs with the best chance to land Stroud but USC is a pretty big wild card right now in terms of how hard they push, who is coaching the team in a few weeks, etc.
Jayden de Laura's process is going to go into the late period. He is committed to Washington State but official visits certainly appear to be coming down the pike and perhaps into January. I think ideally for Ohio State, they would have the month of December to focus primarily on Stroud, see what he does while keeping up with de Laura and then if they don't get Stroud, have the entire month of January to work that one.
I'd be a bit surprised if Ohio State wasn't able to add one of these two guys to the fold when it's all said and done. I'm sure they'll continue to evaluate other guys on tape and keep looking into other options until they get a commitment, but there is enough interest here from each of these two that combined with the recruiting ability of guys like Ryan Day and Mike Yurcich, that I think they'll be able to get it done with one of these two and that would be a really strong accomplishment as it's never easy to get two QB's in one class, especially two good ones.
Running Back
Still in a holding pattern here. Miyan Williams is expected to be on campus this Saturday with his mother. This is going to be a big visit, even though it is anticipated that it will be just an unofficial visit. Williams is just so quiet that a day around him to get a better feel for things and to work on getting the official visit setup will be pretty important. Again, I *think* Ohio State will get this done but it's just not the slam dunk that people might assume.
The Buckeyes are still battling for Jahmyr Gibbs and there is no real movement there this week. Alabama is a wild card because there hasn't been a push yet and that may never come, but if Zach Evans goes elsewhere and does so in a timely manner, it could push Nick Saban and Co. to re-evaluate that decision. It doesn't look right now like Georgia is going to get seriously involved. Florida is very much involved but appears to be behind the Buckeyes right now. And Georgia Tech will continue to get downplayed because it's not the same caliber program of these other schools, but there is a very real chance that Gibbs just sticks with that pledge.
Right now the hope from Ohio State's end would be to get Gibbs on campus for an official visit in December. There is some optimism that will happen but nothing has been scheduled yet.
Wildcards
So we know for sure that Ohio State wants/needs to add a quarterback and at least one running back. From that point, everything else is totally up in the air. Yes, a big-time edge rusher would be a nice thing, but that's not a spot they're going to reach for at this point. They're still in the mix for Tyler Baron who took to Twitter to say he believes he has his school in mind, yet won't be announcing for a little bit.
I don't think it's going to be Ohio State for Baron but until something is announced publicly, you never know what can happen. I wouldn't say the Tennessee situation has "stabilized", I think that would be giving the folks in Knoxville way too much credit, but the doomsday scenario of firing Pruitt just two years into his tenure seems to be growing more unlikely by the week which gives the Vols, who employ Baron's father, a second wind in that recruitment. Kentucky has been discounted too much in this as well and remains a potential landing spot.
As I've talked about previously, Ohio State has also put out feelers to Hilliard Davidson defensive end Gage Keys. Nothing to the point where I think it's more likely than not to result in an offer, but definitely enough to keep an eye on. Is Keys an edge rusher or just kind of more of the same SSDE/DT that the Buckeyes have already landed in this class in guys like Ty Hamilton, Jacolbe Cowan, and Darrion Henry? An important question that has to be considered before moving forward.
Things have been quiet on the Xavier Carlton front, but that is pretty normal for Carlton. Know he's been "on the board" for OSU, but haven't heard anything recently on him that would indicate a visit has been setup. That is something I'll be working on more this week to see where things stand there.
Beyond defensive end, there is also defensive back. Ohio State is pretty happy with the DB's right now, three very good corners, one outstanding safety, and that doesn't even count Cam Martinez or Kourt Williams. Elias Ricks won't be happening (more on that below) and it's not looking like Kelee Ringo will end up making an official visit (though that one is probably a bit more subject to change than Ricks).
So the Buckeyes aren't going to reach at defensive back. I'm told they are more than willing to stand with what they have and are very comfortable with that.
There is some overlap here, but you also have the late Ohio offer. Again, Keys is worth at least keeping an eye on. Columbus Walnut Ridge athlete Qian Magwood should be returning on Saturday for another unofficial visit, he's also worth keeping an eye on.
But here's the true wild card. The coaching carousel is just now going to start to spin. There is really no predicting what sort of collateral damage could occur at that point. There are likely names we aren't talking about right now that could surface in the next few weeks as coaches are fired or take bigger jobs or as assistants move on that could cause players to open things up. Ohio State will be selective here but also pro-active if it's a big-time player or a position of need.
Penn State weekend notes
Not going to spend a ton of time on this because we have all week to update the visitor list and talk about the big upcoming recruiting weekend but a couple of interesting things to get started, one good and one bad.
Elias Ricks won't be visiting for the Penn State game, which means he won't be visiting Ohio State at all before he signs. Which means he won't be signing with Ohio State. Ricks is more locked in than ever with LSU.
Was told by several people that contact had dipped in recent weeks between the Buckeyes and Ricks as it looked more and more apparent that the five-star prospect wasn't going to budge off his pledge to the Tigers.
On a positive note, it could be argued that the top two offensive line targets in the 2021 are going to be on campus this weekend in IMG Academy (FL) offensive tackle J.C. Latham and Houston (TX) Episcopal tackle/guard Donovan Jackson. These two guys are both absolute studs and two players that the Buckeyes would take early and be absolutely thrilled about it.
I've had a pick in for Latham to Ohio State for a little bit now, Lejond Cavazos has been doing some very good work on that one. Jackson will be a tougher pull but this will be a return unofficial visit after making it up back in the spring so he is highly interested.
These won't be the only two offensive linemen on campus Saturday but having two of this caliber from out-of-state is definitely a very good thing for the Buckeyes who already have one of the nation's best in the fold in Ben Christman.
